Chaos
by BlackFox12
Summary: Set after season two. When Owen is supposedly killed for good, he finds himself in a hospital and back to living normality. The problem? His life force is bound to that of a coma patient
1. Chapter 1

**Chaos**

**Chapter One**

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Torchwood and I'm not making any money from this fic. Any character you don't recognise from the show, I probably own

**Summary:** Set after season two. When Owen is supposedly killed for good, he finds himself in a hospital and back to living normality. The problem? His life force is bound to that of a coma patient

**Warning(s):** Spoilers up to and including the final episode of season two; strong violence; original characters; will contain spanking in later chapters; Alternate Universe

**Pairings:** Jack/Ianto; Owen/OFC... May eventually become a foursome

**Author's Note:** Please pay attention to the pairings and the warnings... This fic is being written to work out a kink that won't leave me alone, so if there's anything here you don't like and you read anyway, please don't complain. However, constructive criticism is more than welcome

* * *

"We're losing him." The speaker's voice was female, and sounded relatively calm – unusual for the situation. "Where's the doctor?" she demanded of someone else. "Has someone paged him yet?"

Owen felt warm lips cover his own as someone forcefully expelled breath into his mouth. He imagined he could feel his lungs inflating... But when he tried to take a breath by himself, he found he couldn't. A distant part of him noted that that was normal; at least for the way he'd been 'living' for the past few weeks... or was it months?

Though he couldn't drag the speaker's face to his mind, Owen was pretty sure he knew who was treating him.

Damn Torchwood. Why couldn't they just let him die? He tried to say something to that effect, but the words wouldn't come. He tried to open his eyes to glare at the room's occupants, but they felt almost glued shut.

"Get me the paddles." The new speaker was male, and held a note of authority. "What happened to him? Who brought him here? Does anyone know who he is?" The man was clearly acting as he spoke – pumping Owen's chest at the same time as the woman performed CPR.

As soon as Owen could speak, he'd tell them not to bother saving him – to just let him stay dead like they should have done in the first place. But it was too difficult to even move his littlest finger, let alone open his mouth and speak.

"I need a shot of adrenaline. And where are those paddles?"

A moment later – or it could have been several minutes, for all he knew – Owen felt a slight pinch in his chest. It had been a while since he'd felt pain, and the sensation was something he could have done without being reminded of.

But the slight pinch was nothing compared to the jolt he got from the paddles after they were pressed to his body. There was a beeping sound that seemed to come from far away, and it grew higher in pitch for a moment or two, before falling flat once more.

"Again."

Owen wasn't pleased with the new reminder of what pain was like. But it felt like his whole body was paralysed – though this time, when the beep grew higher-pitched, it didn't go down again.

"He's alive." The male's voice was obviously relieved. "Does anyone know how to contact his family?"

Owen tried to tell them to contact Torchwood, but he felt unconsciousness begin to claim him again. He struggled against it briefly, but it was a fight he quickly lost.

* * *

When Owen regained consciousness again, his mouth felt like sandpaper. With great effort, he rolled his head to one side; and saw that he was hooked up to a life support machine. "Oh, great. Why can't you just let me die?"

At least, that's what he _tried_ to say. Unfortunately, because his mouth was so dry, all that came out was a series of sounds which couldn't form a coherent word, let alone a whole sentence.

"Oh... you're awake!" A nurse leaned over Owen's bed with a disgustingly cheerful look on her face. "Don't try to move yet. You've been out of it for two days, and you don't want to pull out the IV."

Owen wanted to ask if they'd contacted Torchwood yet, but he could guess the answer. After all, if they _had_ contacted them, he was sure that Tosh and Jack – and maybe even Gwen – would be in the hospital room with him.

Did that mean they thought he was dead? Damn... That was irritating.

"I'll let the doctor know you're awake." The nurse started towards the door, and then paused. "With the amount of casualties from the bombs, we've had to put some patients in the same rooms. But don't worry – the woman in the next bed is a coma patient, and she won't disturb you." With those words, the woman walked quietly out of the room and closed the door behind her.

More curious than anything else, Owen turned his head to the other side – and his first thought was that the patient was a child, almost completely obscured by wires. But when his vision cleared, he saw that actually, it was a grown woman – just very tiny. There was a slow, steady beep from the monitor beside her.

For a few moments, Owen just watched, half-expecting the woman to open her eyes. He'd seen stranger things, after all. But she remained as still and pale as death, her chest barely moving.

When the door opened again, it took more effort to turn his head in the direction of the doctor and the nurse. He narrowed his eyes, and resisted the urge to try and sit up. It was with some relief that he saw the cup of water in the nurse's hand, and he sipped gratefully when she held it to his lips.

"We haven't managed to find any identification on you," the doctor said, stopping by Owen's bed. "Are you feeling up to answering a few questions?" he asked once the water was finished.

Owen was half-tempted to say that he would rather wait – but he supposed it was better to get any questions out of the way sooner rather than later. He cleared his throat. "Ask away." He didn't seem to have any problems speaking, but his voice was barely above a croak.

"What's your name?" the doctor questioned, as he checked the readings on the monitor.

"Owen Harper." Owen didn't expect anyone here to recognise him, but he wondered why Torchwood apparently hadn't heard anything about him being in the hospital. He would have thought that Jack had contacts here, but maybe Jack simply didn't think there was any point when he thought he knew what had happened to his team.

But maybe it was for the best anyway. After all, he was sick of dying only to be brought back to life. As soon as he was away from the watchful eyes of the doctor, he could take care of the job properly; and no one needed to know. He watched the doctor as the man continued to check the readings. "Were there any other questions? I'd rather you got them out of the way quickly so that I can go back to sleep."

"Well, we can always do this tomorrow," the doctor said. "But right now, all I need to find out from you is if there's someone who needs to be contacted – a significant other, or perhaps a sibling or parent."

"There's no one." Owen didn't look at him as he spoke. "I think you'll find that I've got an excellent medical plan, so you don't have to worry about treating yet another person just leeching off the health care." He was finding it difficult to even keep his eyes open, and he let them drift closed again, wondering why he was so tired if he'd been sleeping for two days. Then again, not much made sense about living.

Right before he slipped into unconsciousness again, Owen heard the doctor telling the nurse that his dosage needed to be changed.

* * *

Owen knew that he was dreaming, but as he looked at Jack's pale, cold form, all he could do was remember the creature which had been housed by the Rift.

Even though he knew on some level that Jack had come back, Owen couldn't let go of the feeling of guilt. Because he'd shot Jack, the captain had been weakened when the Rift had been opened... But he hadn't hesitated when it came to giving his life to protect everyone else, including those who had turned against him.

Owen heard Gwen talk and himself respond, but he didn't listen to the words. The guilt he felt was overwhelming, and it was taking everything he had not to break down then and there.

The next moment, Owen found himself in the main room of the Torchwood base, with Tosh and Ianto. Gwen was still with Jack – which Owen didn't think was healthy; but he didn't have the heart to tell her to give up. Secretly, he wished that he could have as much faith as Gwen had... But he'd seen too many bad things to have faith in the impossible.

As he rounded the corner, though, the first sign that met Owen's startled eyes was of Jack... kissing Ianto. When the captain let go of Ianto and met Owen's gaze, the first instinct he had was to run away. He didn't want this confrontation... He didn't want to face up to what he'd done.

But his feet were moving of their own accord. And as Owen moved, so did Jack; until they were close enough that one could reach out and touch the other. Owen didn't make eye contact as he stuttered, trying to apologise – but knowing that no words he could say would ever be enough.

"I forgive you."

Owen gave a soft of jerky half-nod, and then felt the tears start. Immediately, Jack pulled him into his arms, holding him as he broke down.

"What happened to you?"

Abruptly, Owen was no longer at the Torchwood base, but in his apartment. When he turned round after wiping at nonexistent tears, there was a tiny blonde woman standing behind him. "Well... This is better than the dreams I normally have." The only thing missing, of course, was them both being naked.

The woman gave a small, slightly hesitant smile. "What's Torchwood?" she asked, tilting her head slightly.

"Torchwood is..." Owen hesitated, the need for secrecy there even while he was asleep. Shaking his head, he decided that there was no point in refusing to talk about it in his dreams. "It was an organisation created to deal with any threats of alien invasion." He gave a slightly self-mocking smile. "Work under the radar and all that... The twenty-first century is when everything changes, if you can believe what Captain Jack says."

"Was that the man you were hugging just now?" The woman moved closer to him, and reached up to twine her hands behind his neck, her lips only a few centimetres from his.

"Why should we talk about Captain Jack when there are so many other things we could be doing?" Owen let his lips brush lightly against hers and then deepened the kiss, pressing her closer to him with a hand on her back. He was going to enjoy this dream as much as possible. It had been too long since he'd been able to be with a woman... And now he planned on making the most of it before he died for good.

"If I wanted to visit this Torchwood... Where would I have to go?"

Owen looked past her at the bed. "Well, you know, why don't we talk about this later?" He pulled her over to the bed and sat down, pulling her down next to him. When she didn't resist, he rolled over, pinning her down with one hand on either side of her head as he kissed her.

* * *

Lying next to Rhys, Gwen found herself unable to sleep. She stared up at the ceiling of their room, remembering Tosh and Owen, as much as she tried to forget seeing them both dead. She was devastated by the loss, but wondered how much harder it had been for Jack. After all, he was immortal... And he had to face the fact that, sooner or later, he would see everyone he cared about die.

She could only hope that Jack would let Ianto in; and accept the comfort he was bound to be able to offer.

Rhys was asleep, and Gwen couldn't blame him. He'd done his best to comfort her, but she'd been near inconsolable. Now, she couldn't do anything other than stare at the ceiling and try not to think too much... something that was near impossible.

And a shadow passed across her vision.

Blinking, Gwen sat up slightly; and found her attention drawn to her bedroom door. For a few moments, she just stared, noticing that there seemed to be something flickering by the door. Every so often, she thought she could make out the shape of a person – but it faded before she could make out any details.

Automatically, Gwen got out of bed. She didn't think of calling Jack or Ianto – she just knew she had to do something other than just lie around feeling worse and worse.

"Where are you going?"

Gwen paused, glancing over her shoulder at Rhys. He was awake – but still looked quite tired. "You can go back to sleep, if you want. I just... I think there's somewhere I have to be." She turned back to the door in time to see the flickering go through.

"I'll come with you," Rhys said immediately, beginning to pull on his clothes.

"All right." Gwen got dressed as quickly as she could, and pulled open the door in time to see the flickering head out of the apartment. She had to run in order to keep up with it.

* * *

The thing – whatever it was – had waited for Rhys and Gwen to get in the car, and led them through the streets. Fortunately, the traffic wasn't too bad – since Gwen only just managed to keep the flickering light in sight. Rhys hadn't been able to see the light, so Gwen had had to drive, since she could just imagine the amount of accidents they might have been in if she'd attempted to direct Rhys.

And when the light finally stopped outside the hospital, Gwen couldn't help frowning. "Why are we here?" she wondered. She parked the car, and the light – its job obviously done – disappeared.

"Do you think that maybe you should call Jack now?" Rhys asked. "We don't want to walk straight into a trap."

For a few moments, Gwen just sat there. Then, she shrugged and opened the door. "No... I want to check this out on my own, without having to call Jack." She got out of the car and headed towards the entrance, without waiting to see if Rhys was following.

**End of Chapter One**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chaos**

**Chapter Two**

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Torchwood and I'm not making any money from this fic. Any character you don't recognise from the show, I probably own

**Summary:** Set after season two. When Owen is supposedly killed for good, he finds himself in a hospital and back to living normality. The problem? His life force is bound to that of a coma patient

**Warning(s):** Spoilers up to and including the final episode of season two; strong violence; original characters; Alternate Universe

**Pairings:** Jack/Ianto; Owen/OFC... May eventually become a foursome

**Author's Note:** I couldn't work out if Owen knew about Gray or not, so this is a slight AU in which he does

* * *

The contented feeling Owen had after waking up from his sex-filled dream lasted exactly five minutes... and then he heard Gwen's voice outside his hospital room.

Briefly, Owen considered the possibility that he'd simply imagined Gwen's voice. That hope was quickly cut down, though, when he heard Gwen's voice grow louder as she apparently got closer to the door. He thought about jumping out of the window, but quickly discarded _that_ idea. He was a doctor; he knew that he shouldn't move and dislodge the IV in his arm.

Should he hide under the blankets? No... That was just a little childish. Looked like there was nothing more to do than just lie there and wait for the inevitable confrontation. Why couldn't he have stayed asleep for a bit longer? Of course, then he wouldn't _know_ that Gwen was on her way...

Right before the door opened, Owen settled for assuming quite a nonchalant pose. When Gwen walked into the room, he plastered a fake smile on his face and looked up at her. "Took you long enough to find me." He saw Rhys as well, but the other man hovered in the background, apparently unwilling to interrupt.

"Owen... you're alive!" For a moment, Gwen just stared at him, as if she could hardly believe the evidence of her own eyes. Then, abruptly, she hugged him tightly, heedless of the IV in his arm. "I can't believe it!"

"Hey, careful." When he felt wetness on his shoulder, Owen realised that Gwen was crying. He felt bad, but didn't really know how to comfort her. A little awkwardly – particularly with Gwen's husband there – he put his free arm around her.

"What happened?" Rhys asked.

As Gwen let go of Owen, her face composed once more, he shrugged slightly. "I wish I knew. One moment, I was – you know – and talking to Tosh... And then I suddenly woke up here." He thought that he'd probably used up all his miracles for one lifetime. "Have you managed to find Jack? Is Tosh okay?"

The glance that Gwen and Rhys exchanged didn't go unnoticed by Owen. He narrowed his eyes, unable to help the feeling of unease which threatened to overwhelm him. "What aren't you telling me?" he asked.

"We can't talk about this now." Gwen straightened up and took a slight breath. "Rhys, would you call Jack and ask him to come here with Ianto?"

Rhys nodded, and glanced briefly at Owen before leaving the room. Owen was slightly relieved that the man wasn't asking questions, but he was going to have to think up answers sooner or later. Problem was that right now, he didn't know what the answers were himself.

At least the presence of the doctor meant that Gwen couldn't ask any awkward questions until later – when Jack arrived and sealed off the room as Torchwood business. Since it seemed that Gwen hadn't been expecting him to be alive, Owen figured that meant that Torchwood hadn't had anything to do with his sudden resurrection – unless, of course, Jack or Tosh had done something without Gwen knowing.

Why hadn't Gwen told Rhys to make sure that Tosh came as well?

Owen was distracted from his thoughts by a slight pinch in his arm. "Ow," he said, taken aback by the sudden sensation of pain. He glanced sideways in time to see the doctor withdrawing a needle from the coma patient's arm.

Sympathetic pain... It was something that Owen had heard of before; but apart from that moment after he'd first woken up, he hadn't paid any attention to the coma patient at all.

Gwen looked carefully at Owen, and when the doctor finished checking the other patient's vitals, she spoke to him. "Two of our colleagues should be arriving here shortly. Do you mind just waiting for him? It's Torchwood business," she added.

"Oh... Of course. I need to speak to someone anyway." The doctor walked quickly out of the room.

"You felt that needle going in." It wasn't a question.

Instead of replying, Owen went straight to the thing that concerned him the most. "_Two_ colleagues? You're referring to Jack and Ianto... Where's Tosh? How is she?"

Gwen looked away, avoiding making eye contact with him. Owen knew that look – it was a look he'd worn himself on various occasions. "What happened?" His voice was calm – calmer than it should have been. He focused on breathing; in and out. It helped in that he wasn't so tempted to punch the nearest solid object, but did nothing to help the turmoil inside him.

"... Was shot," Gwen finished.

It was difficult to focus on Gwen through the red haze obscuring his vision, but Owen managed anyway. "Was it Gray?" His voice sounded peculiar – almost strangled.

Reluctantly, Gwen nodded.

"Tell me Jack killed him." On some level, Owen knew that he wouldn't have – that the captain wouldn't have been able to bring himself to take the man's life. But he could always do it himself. In fact, that would be better. It seemed fitting that he be the one to avenge Tosh.

"Owen... Jack's not going to let you near him," Gwen said – just as if she knew what he was thinking.

"Jack doesn't rule me," Owen replied. "We killed him once, remember? It was Gray who killed Tosh. It wouldn't be murder... It would be justice." His tone was still flat and emotionless, as he planned out exactly what he was going to do. "So long as you don't tell Jack what's going to happen, we'll be fine."

"Don't tell Jack what?" the captain asked, walking into the room.

Owen shot Gwen a warning look before turning his attention to Jack. "Well, you know... What a fine specimen of manhood you are. Your ego's big enough already. Hello, Ianto," he added, spotting the final member of Torchwood behind Jack. For some reason, the joking note in his voice fell flat.

Jack didn't look too convinced, but apparently decided not to press the subject. Or maybe he just thought that Owen looked too ill to cause any problems. "What happened?"

"Haven't a clue. One moment, I was dead; the next, I was here – and being resuscitated." Owen frowned. "Doctors these days. They always insist on saving you, even when you don't want to be saved." When Gwen cleared her throat, Owen added, "Oh, and I seem to have some weird thing going on with the coma patient in the next bed. I felt it when she was being given an injection." Owen shifted his position slightly to look at the woman, and was abruptly reminded of the person in his dreams. If he imagined her without the wires – and looking much healthier – then it was the same person.

Was he really desperate enough to dream of having sex with someone who was in a coma?

While Jack studied Owen as if he were a particularly interesting specimen, Ianto walked over to the coma patient. For a few moments, the only sound in the room was that of the monitors beeping. Then, Jack spoke to Ianto. "We're going to need to collect samples from her."

"Do you think she's an alien?" Ianto asked. Without waiting for a reply, he took out one of the medical kits and began collecting blood and tissue samples.

As he did so, Owen felt a twinge wherever the needle went in. And when Ianto plucked a few strands of hair from the woman's head, Owen felt like his own hair had been pulled out.

Jack took all of this in while answering Ianto's question. "An alien who bonds herself to a human in order to survive... You'd think she would be a little more original."

"Why me?" Owen asked.

"Maybe she just thinks you're particularly difficult to kill," Ianto suggested.

"I wonder how long she's been in a coma for," Jack mused, and glanced at Owen.

"Don't look at me. She only became interesting when I realised what happened to her affected me." And, of course, when he'd realised she was the same woman he'd dreamed of having sex with – but since that was more likely to be wish fulfilment than anything else... "So where's Gray?" he asked as casually as he could.

"Do you really think I'm going to tell you that?" Jack looked at him pointedly.

"Listening outside doors, captain? I wouldn't have thought that was your style." Despite himself, Owen couldn't keep the note of bitterness out of his voice.

"Don't start, Owen," Jack warned. "And don't make the mistake of thinking that I don't care about Tosh. But killing Gray isn't the answer. It's not going to bring her back."

"Maybe not – but avenging her death will make me feel better," Owen muttered. "It doesn't matter if you don't tell me." He was sure he'd be able to easily find where Gray was, since freezing was really the only way Jack could deal with people he was reluctant to kill.

"Owen, we all talked about this," Gwen said quietly. "None of us are happy with the decision... But it's not our place to kill someone in cold blood."

Owen glared at Jack, ignoring the way the monitor's beeping sped up. "So let me get this straight. If an alien turns into a murderer, we kill them. But if it's a person, all we do is give them a slap on the wrist and freeze them?" He shook his head. "I'm so glad to be part of an organisation like Torchwood."

"It's not that simple, Owen."

"No, I'll tell you what's simple." Owen glared at Jack and ignored Gwen. "Gray's a part of your past, so you won't kill him. You're a fool, Jack."

In the silence which followed, the coma patient's monitor increased its beeping, matching speed with Owen's.

"You should be careful, Owen," Jack said quietly. "Until we understand exactly what's going on here, you need to keep better control over your emotions."

Owen's eyes narrowed, and he just about managed to avoid exploding. As long as he remained calm, though, he had more of a chance to find out where Gray was.

"Does she have any family?" Gwen asked, stepping over to the coma patient's side. She glanced at Jack. "Maybe we could take her back and run some tests..." Her voice trailed off, and for a moment or two, she just looked sad.

"Because it's not like we have the resident genius anymore," Owen said quietly in the silence. "But since I'm still a doctor, I can run the tests."

"They're hardly going to release her just to you, though." Ianto then spoke to Jack. "I'll go and find out if she has any family who might object to her being moved." Without waiting for a reply, he quickly left the room.

"Why don't you go and see how Rhys is doing?"

Jack was obviously dismissing Gwen, and she clearly knew it. "I think Rhys will be all right on his own at the moment."

"I want to talk to Owen alone," Jack said bluntly.

For a few moments, Gwen looked like she wanted to refuse. Then, slowly, she nodded. "It's good to see you, Owen." She quietly let herself out of the room.

"So is now the time you decide to retcon me?" Owen wasn't able to keep the bitterness out of his tone.

"Now why would I do that?" Jack raised his eyebrows. "There's been too much going on to worry about you when you're clearly not up to misbehaving." Despite the apparent light-heartedness of his tone, there was a faint look of sadness in the captain's eyes.

Owen nodded slightly, and then frowned as a thought occurred to him. "So how did Gwen know where I was?"

**End of Chapter Two**


End file.
